All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee Vols morning report: Death of Smokey’s trainer, Gullickson on Jones

By Caleb Calhoun

Sep 5, 2015; Nashville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers fans flies the United States flag and the Volunteer flag prior to the game against the Bowling Green Falcons at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 5, 2015; Nashville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers fans flies the United States flag and the Volunteer flag prior to the game against the Bowling Green Falcons at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

The death of Smokey’s trainer, Rock Gullickson on Butch Jones, and A.J. Johnson’s case lead the Volunteers news for Thursday, June 29, 2017.

We’re one day away from the end of June, and as we get set for the weekend before Fourth of July, there’s still a lot of Tennessee Vols news to bring you. The heart of summer isn’t stopping these updates from coming.

The anniversary of Pat Summitt’s death on Wednesday brought a lot of heartfelt moments. It’s still clear that she had an amazing impact on the world of sports. Now, today, we look back on another, more recent death affiliated with the university.

As we get set to bring you the news on Rocky Top for today, this death involves somebody connected to Smokey, the Tennessee mascot.

We also have news on the Vols’ new strength coach and how summer workouts are going, and there’s an update on a serious case involving a former Vol.

Let’s start with the person connected to Smokey.

Smokey’s trainer dies – UTSports

The Tennessee Vols’ beloved mascot Smokey is likely feeling grief today after the death of one of his trainers, which apparently happened this past weekend.

"The Tennessee family is mourning the loss of Dr. Earl C. Hudson, who passed away Saturday in Knoxville at age 91.Since 1994, Hudson and his wife, Martha, have owned and trained the famous line of blue tick coon hounds that serve as UT’s living canine mascot, “Smokey.”"

Rock Gullickson praises Butch Jones’s support – Mike Griffith, SEC Country

After last year, it was clear that the Tennessee Vols needed to fill their strength coach position to make sure they wouldn’t suffer the rash of injuries again. Butch Jones did that by bringing in Rock Gullickson. Running summer workouts, Gullickson has praised Jones’s support.

"Rock Gullickson, the Vols’ first-year strength coach and a 17-year veteran of the NFL coaching ranks, says it has been a team effort in the weight room.“If your head coach is behind you, and the position coaches support you along with the coordinators, you can get a lot done,” Gullickson told SEC Country. “It takes a whole village to make this thing happen, and without all those pieces in place, this job wouldn’t be going anywhere.”"

Former Vols try to block state’s appeal in rape case – Jamie Satterfield, Knoxville News Sentinel

Former Tennessee football linebacker A.J. Johnson and his ex-teammate are still fighting a sexual assault case from 2014.

"Former star University of Tennessee linebacker A.J. Johnson and an ex-teammate say they didn’t rape anyone, so how can prosecutors call their accuser a “victim,” much less claim to be her attorney?That’s the question defense attorneys for Johnson and former teammate Michael Williams are asking in their bid to persuade the Tennessee Supreme Court not to review a lower court ruling that was a victory for those accused across the state."

Home/Tennessee Volunteers